Scottish Executive

Autism

Dr Winnie Ewing (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what provision there is in the Highlands and Islands for the teaching of children with autistic spectrum disorder and what additional resources have been made available in recent years to assist local authorities with the provision of services for autistic children.

Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive is taking forward a broad SEN Programme of Action to support education authorities meet their statutory duty to secure adequate and efficient educational provision throughout Scotland. This includes the provision of Grant Aided Expenditure for Special Educational Needs totalling £178 million in 2000-01 and £192 million for 2001-02, of which Highland Council’s pro-rata share is £7.4 million and £7.9 million respectively. From April 2000, the Scottish Executive Inclusion Programme is providing £19 million over two years to assist local authorities to include children with SEN, including autism, in mainstream provision. Highland Council will receive a total of £793,112 based on the numbers of pupils aged 2 to 19. In addition, the Executive is providing £5 million per year to local authorities for the development and training of classroom-based staff and trainee educational psychologists working with children with special educational needs.

Boundary Walls

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-11646 by Mr Jim Wallace on 12 January 2001 and with reference to a letter of 16 October 1990 from the Chairman of the Scottish Law Commission to Mr David Lambie MP, whether it is aware of any independent research on the law of boundary walls initiated by the Commission which indicated that the law on this subject consists of two lines of decision which cannot be satisfactorily reconciled and, if so, whether this research supports its position that no further legislation or other action is necessary to review or restate the law in this area.

Mr Jim Wallace: The research referred to in the letter of 16 October 1990 was conducted "in-house" by the Scottish Law Commission and covered the exposition of the existing law. This research was taken into account when the Commission issued its consultation paper and reached its recommendations in its report.

Boundary Walls

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-11646 by Mr Jim Wallace on 12 January 2001, whether it will make any independent research on the law of boundary walls initiated by the Scottish Law Commission publicly available.

Mr Jim Wallace: No independent research on this subject was initiated by the Scottish Law Commission.

Building Control

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prosecutions for non-compliance of building standards regulations under section 11 of the Building (Scotland) Act 1959 there were in (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999 and (d) 2000.

Lewis Macdonald: Cases brought under section 11 of the Building (Scotland) Act 1959 are not separately identifiable on the Scottish Executive classification of crimes and offences. Between 1997 and 1999 there were eight prosecutions in Scottish courts where the main offence was under the Building (Scotland) Act 1959. Data for the year 2000 are not yet available.

Cancer

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the median waiting time is from GP referral to surgery for all forms of cancer and what the equivalent figures were for each of the last ten years, broken down by health board.

Susan Deacon: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-12417 on 30 March 2001.

Central Heating

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-3453 by Jackie Baillie on 17 May 2001, and to her letter to me of 13 November 2000 regarding the condemned central heating system of a constituent, whether it remains the case that, based on the information provided, the constituent in question will be eligible for assistance under the central heating initiative.

Jackie Baillie: The rules for the programme in the private sector provide that householders will be eligible if they are over 60 and have no central heating or where there is a system that is wholly non-functioning and beyond repair.

Contraception

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive in which local authority areas the morning-after pill is available via school nurses.

Susan Deacon: School nurses can only provide medication where authorised to do so under a Patient Group Direction, issued by their NHS Trust. No Directions in respect of school nurses and emergency contraception have been issued anywhere in Scotland to date.

Cycling

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to provide good quality cycle training for all primary school children.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Road Safety Campaign, funded by the Scottish Executive, oversees the Scottish Cycle Training Scheme. New training materials for the scheme were issued to all Road Safety Units in Scotland in March last year and their use promoted in schools throughout Scotland. A resource for Road Safety Officers to use in training volunteer cycle trainers, developed by the campaign, was issued in March.

  The provision of cycle training for children is a matter for schools and for police and local authority road safety units.

Dairy Produce

Mr Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what volume of milk was produced after adjustment for butterfat for both wholesale and direct sales in the year ending 31 March 2001 within the Southern Isles ring-fenced area.

Ross Finnie: The butterfat adjusted wholesale production figure for quota year ended 31 March 2001 was 55,378,455 litres. The direct sales figure for quota year ended 31 March 2001 is not yet available.

Drug Misuse

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many new rehabilitation services have been established with the £21 million given to the Scottish Drugs Forum for this purpose, whether any of these are aimed at young people and, if so, where these are located.

Iain Gray: No funds have been provided to the Scottish Drugs Forum to establish drug rehabilitation services.

Ferry Services

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made or plans to make to the Scotland Office to bring forward the commencement of the operation of the Rosyth European Ferry.

Sarah Boyack: No specific procedural assistance is required from the Scotland Office in relation to the possible introduction of a Rosyth European Ferry.

Fisheries

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what budget has been made available to the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency for the policing of the haddock fishery adjacent to Rockall in the north east Atlantic.

Rhona Brankin: The costs of the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency’s involvement in policing the haddock fishery adjacent to Rockall, in both international and EU waters, will be met from its existing budget of £12.8 million for the current financial year.

Fisheries

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when the remit and responsibilities of the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency were enlarged to include the monitoring of the haddock fishery adjacent to Rockall in the north east Atlantic, as opposed to the enforcement of the Atlanto-Scandinavian herring fishery.

Rhona Brankin: New enforcement obligations were introduced for EU Member States last year when the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) scheme of control and enforcement was implemented. The Scottish Executive gained new powers to appoint NEAFC inspectors to enforce regulations in the NEAFC zone. Last year the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency took part in patrols and inspections of vessels involved in the international Atlanto-Scandinavian herring fishery.

  Following the agreement achieved at a NEAFC meeting earlier this year, an area of the NEAFC zone around Rockall was closed to protect haddock. Haddock has thus become a regulated NEAFC resource. SFPA vessels have been carrying out patrols and inspections around Rockall this spring. This represents the Scottish contribution to meeting member states’ enforcement obligations on the high seas. Other member states are enforcing regulations in the Atlanto-Scandinavian herring fishery

Fisheries

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will send a representative to the meeting of the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation in Mondariz, Spain, from 4 to 8 June 2001 to participate in the negotiation of an international agreement on the containment of genetically modified fish.

Rhona Brankin: Officials from the Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department attended the annual meeting of the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation in Mondariz, Spain from 4 to 8 June 2001 as members of the European Union Delegation.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Dumfries and Galloway Council regarding the costs the council has incurred in tackling the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the region and in alleviating the effects on local businesses and communities; whether it intends to reimburse the council for these expenses, and when a decision on any such reimbursement is likely to be made.

Ross Finnie: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-15654 on 10 May 2001.

Health

Mr Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Grampian Health Board has the lowest level of cancelled operations of all health boards and, if so, why, and whether it will identify any best practice procedures the board employs which other health boards could adopt.

Susan Deacon: Information on the number of operations cancelled by NHSScotland is not collected centrally. Data are collected on the number of planned admissions to hospital which are cancelled. Data for the year ending 31 March 2000, the latest period for which data are available can be found on the SHOW website at

  http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/isd/Scottish_Health_Statistics/SHS2000/M1.pdf

  I strongly support the efforts of the NHS to reduce the number of cancelled admissions to hospital and to spread good operational practice. The development of new performance assessment and accountability arrangements for NHSScotland, as described in Our National Health: A plan for action, a plan for change will help encourage continuous improvement in NHS performance through benchmarking, sharing of good practice and publication of performance information.

Housing

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail (a) the level of New Housing Partnership funding allocated, (b) any changes made to these allocations and (c) actual or projected underspend against those allocations in (i) 1999-2000, (ii) 2000-01 and (iii) 2001-02, both overall and broken down by local authority.

Jackie Baillie: Details of the New Housing Partnership funding allocated to councils in February 1999 for the period 1999-2002 are shown in column (2) below, together with any subsequent revisions. Actual or projected variations in spend are shown in columns (3)-(5).

  

 
 

Variations 
  



Council  
  

Resource Allocation
(a) Original
(b) Revised 
  

1999-2000



2000-01 
  

2001-02 
  



(1) 
  

(2) 
  

(3) 
  

(4) 
  

(5) 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

(a) 1,990,600 
  

-20,000 
  

-797,600 
  

+817,600 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

(a) 6,869,680 
  

- 
  

+17,101 
  

-17,029 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

(a) 270,000 
  

- 
  

-75,000 
  

+75,000 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

(a) 100,000 
  

-20,975 
  

+7,224 
  

- 
  



Comhairle nan Eilean Siar 
  

(a) 368,000 
  

-61,595 
  

+32,250 
  

+29,345 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

(a) 3,913,000 
  

-6 
  

-1,525,000 
  

+1,525,006 
  



Dundee City


(a) 9,330,000
(b) 24,399,000
(Includes resources awarded under the 1988 
  round) 
  

+531,315



+8,041,980



+6,269,000





East Dunbartonshire 
  

(a) 8,436,000
(b) 8,736,000 
  

-361,751



-6,571,413



-543,000





East Lothian 
  

(a) 50,000
(b) 63,712 
  

-33,138 
  

+48,850 
  

- 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

(a) 100,000 
  

-100,000 
  

+80,000 
  

+20,000 
  



City of Edinburgh 
  

(a) 36,592,125
(b) 36,751,125 
  

-393,496



-10,324,336



-7,583,125





Fife 
  

(a) 6,000,000 
  

-895,420 
  

-3,000,000 
  

-1,428,000 
  



Glasgow City 
  

(a) 25,500,000 
  

-2,005,000 
  

-7,808,307 
  

+9,813,307 
  



Highland 
  

(a) 7,052,975 
  

-127,460 
  

+330,608 
  

-203,148 
  



Inverclyde


(a) 129,500
(b) 339,500 
  


-85,600 
  


+74,200 
  


+221,400 
  



Midlothian 
  

(a) 172,000 
  

-172,000 
  

+139,000 
  

+15,000 
  



Moray


(a) 12,439,000
(b) 12,559,000 
  

-631,360



-5,872,294



+6,054,314





North Ayrshire 
  

(a) 2,643,500 
  

+88,447 
  

-2,171,805 
  

+1,185,306 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

(a) 700,000 
  

-230,000 
  

+68,375 
  

+130,000 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

(a) 563,000 
  

-48,500 
  

-415,000 
  

+235,000 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

(a) 422,000 
  

-319,000 
  

-101,000 
  

+420,000 
  



Renfrewshire


(a) 2,424,500
(b) 2,826,330 
  

-846,025 
  

-972,233 
  

+1,818,258 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

(a) 2,392,000 
  

+130,298 
  

-111,284 
  

-19,014 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

(a) 707,000 
  

-141,000 
  

-280,749 
  

+421,749 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

(a) 197,000 
  

-18,887 
  

+18,886 
  

- 
  



South Lanarkshire


(a) 4,958,500
(b) 7,067,000
(Includes resources awarded under the 1998 
  bidding round) 
  

-246,800



-173,888



+2,529,118





Stirling 
  

(a) 7,585,000 
  

-911,000 
  

-1,209,136 
  

+2,120,136 
  



West Dunbartonshire


(a) 80,000
(b) 100,000 
  

-80,000



+70,000



+30,000





West Lothian 
  

(a) 5,099,500 
  

-1,451,000 
  

-1,767,108 
  

+3,218,108 
  



Total


(a) 147,084,880
(b) 165,486,922 
  

-8,449,952



-34,247,679 
  

+27,154,331

Hutters

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to report on hutters following consultation on its research paper, Huts and Hutting in Scotland.

Iain Gray: The Executive published its consultation paper on 15 December 2000, inviting views on whether, in principle, the Executive should seek to promote legislation to give greater protection to hutters and the detailed provisions required if legislation were to be introduced.

  The consultation closed on 9 March and we received a total of 326 responses, some of which after the closing date. Officials are currently analysing the responses to the consultation and once we have considered all the views of interested parties, we will announce our decision on whether to proceed with legislation.

Learning Disabilities

Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-14328 by Malcolm Chisholm on 4 April 2001, what criteria it used to determine the amount of change funding that would be made available to local authorities to help them implement the recommendations of The Same As You? a review of services for people with learning disabilities and how many transfers of people with learning disabilities from long-stay hospitals to the community this funding will cover in each of the next three years.

Malcolm Chisholm: Change funds were set at a level which would make a significant impact over the first three years of a 10-year implementation programme. These funds are only one of the resources available to local authorities to implement the recommendations of the Learning Disability Review.

  The additional funds are intended to enable better use of existing resources and are not specifically intended as a resource for people coming out of long-stay hospitals, although they may contribute. Authorities were provided with a significant uplift in the Grant Aided Expenditure settlement, amounting to £30 million in each year from 2001-02 to 2003-04 to cover, amongst other things, that element.

Local Government

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the ministerial working group established to examine the recommendations of the report of the Renewing Local Democracy Working Group has now met and when it expects to be able to inform the Parliament of the outcome of the working group’s deliberations.

Peter Peacock: The group has met on four occasions. Its work is continuing and it is not possible to give a firm date by which the Executive will announce its conclusions on the recommendations made by the Renewing Local Democracy Working Group.

Local Government Finance

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total (a) capital and (b) revenue budget is of each local authority in the current financial year.

Angus MacKay: Revenue budget estimates are contained in the table. Forecast capital expenditure plans for the current year are not yet available.

  


 


Revenue Budget Estimate 2001-02 
  (£000) 




Aberdeen City 
  

289,378 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

304,705 
  



Angus 
  

148,968 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

155,725 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

68,281 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

223,346 
  



Dundee 
  

237,745 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

172,135 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

144,343 
  



East Lothian 
  

122,478 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

118,590 
  



Edinburgh City 
  

630,294 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

83,587 
  



Falkirk 
  

198,975 
  



Fife 
  

479,051 
  



Glasgow 
  

1,119,071 
  



Highland 
  

340,748 
  



Inverclyde 
  

133,434 
  



Midlothian 
  

120,009 
  



Moray 
  

119,935 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

198,717 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

460,697 
  



Orkney 
  

47,680 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

183,449 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

253,098 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

155,987 
  



Shetland 
  

67,066 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

158,348 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

426,565 
  



Stirling 
  

130,281 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

154,111 
  



West Lothian 
  

216,438 
  



  Notes:

  1. Revenue figures are net expenditure which is total expenditure met from council tax, non-domestic rates and government grants excluding loan charges. The figures are Budget Estimates as reported by authorities in the annual Provisional Outturn & Budget Estimate (POBE) return to the Executive.

Multiple Sclerosis

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects the Health Technology Board for Scotland to report on the clinical effectiveness of beta interferon.

Susan Deacon: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1O-3328 on 3 May 2001.

Museums

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures the Scottish Executive is taking to support Verdant Works in Dundee and other heritage sites across Scotland.

Allan Wilson: Funding of the Verdant Works is the responsibility of the Dundee Heritage Trust. However, I am making arrangements for a meeting with representatives of the Trust to consider their present financial difficulties.

  A national audit is currently being carried out to establish the relative importance of Scotland’s museum collections, buildings and services and the results will inform the allocation of £3 million which we are providing over three years to help put the museum sector on a sounder footing.

NHS Finance

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the extra resources for Greater Glasgow Health Board recommended in Fair Shares for All , the Report of the Arbuthnott Inquiry will be made available.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive has already made considerable progress in providing extra resources to Greater Glasgow Health Board in line with the recommendations in the Final Report of the Arbuthnott Committee. In 2000-01 every health board in Scotland has received a substantial increase in its funding of at least 5.5%. Health boards whose share of resources should increase under the Arbuthnott formula have received larger increases in funding. Greater Glasgow Health Board’s resources have increased by 7.7%, and this means that in the current financial year this board has received an additional £17.45 million as a result of Arbuthnott.

  The indicative allocations which have been issued for 2002-03 and 2003-04 will also provide Greater Glasgow Health Board with additional resources over and above the general increase in funding. In 2002-03, all health boards will receive an increase of at least 6.5%, while Greater Glasgow Health Board will receive an increase of 7.3%. In 2003-04 every board will receive an increase of at least 7.4% while Greater Glasgow Health Board will receive 8.2%. This means that in 2002-03 and 2003-04 Greater Glasgow Health Board will receive an extra £6.769 million and £7.263 million respectively as a result of Arbuthnott.

  By the end of this three-year period, therefore, the total annual increase in healthcare resources for Greater Glasgow Health Board as a result of Arbuthnott will be over £30 million. This is a very substantial additional sum and it reflects our commitment to target resources on areas of need, to improve health and to tackle inequalities in health.

NHS Finance

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it has issued to NHS Trusts regarding the disposal of assets pending the implementation of resource account budgeting and the flat rate charge which will apply to all assets held.

Susan Deacon: The implementation of resource accounting and budgeting by central government has not had any effect on NHS Trusts disposal of assets. Therefore it has not been necessary to issue any specific advice to Trusts on this matter.

NHS Trusts

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-13949 by Susan Deacon on 23 May 2001, whether it will list the projected year-end overspends of the 13 NHS Trusts to which the answer refers.

Susan Deacon: The information provided in the answer to question S1W-13949 was based on information available as at 31 December 2000.

  Provisional end-year figures indicate that the net overspend of all the NHS Trusts in Scotland taken together as at 31 March 2001 was £400,000. The estimated overspend represents less than 0.01% of estimated income for the year.

  A number of factors, including the additional investment in NHSScotland of over £480 million in 2000-01 and the implementation of financial recovery plans by a number of Trusts, have resulted in this much improved year-end financial position.

National Parks

Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how the establishment of the first National Parks will be taken forward following the recent consultations by Scottish Natural Heritage.

Rhona Brankin: The report by SNH, as reporting body under section 3 of the National Parks (Scotland) Act, was submitted to Scottish Ministers on 19 March. We have considered the report carefully. It has been a very thorough piece of work, involving extensive efforts to ensure a high level of participation. We are satisfied that the reporter’s conclusions reflect a balanced assessment of the views of consultees and the statutory criteria for designation of a National Park. We are therefore broadly accepting the reporter’s conclusions, subject to one or two adjustments. On boundaries the most important of these is that we see the inclusion of the area of west Glen Dochart, including Tyndrum and Crianlarich, as providing an important gateway to the northern end of the park.

  We are therefore publishing today a draft designation order for consultation, as required under section 6 of the National Parks (Scotland) Act. This is being made available widely, and copies have been available to the Parliament’s reference centre. The consultation closes on 21 September, after which the draft order will be amended as required in the light of comments, before the draft order is submitted for approval of the Scottish Parliament in the autumn.

Non-Domestic Rates

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what incentives are in place to ensure that local authorities maximise their non-domestic rates collection.

Angus MacKay: Levels of collection of non-domestic rates are generally high. Nevertheless, the Scottish Executive is currently in discussion with Audit Scotland about assembling detailed information on collection rates and the possible introduction of a performance indicator for non-domestic rates collection.

Nuclear Submarines

Mr John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has had discussions with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency regarding plans to decommission nuclear submarines at Loch Ewe and, if so, what the outcome was.

Rhona Brankin: No.

Pensions

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-8984 by Sarah Boyack on 25 August 2000, whether its statement that it "will have regard to" the Statement of Practice on Staff Transfers in the Public Sector means that it is following the recommendations of the statement; what requirements the tender documents for the trunk road unit contracts specified in relation to the protection of occupational pensions, and whether it will place a copy of any such requirements in SPICe, specifying the reasons for its position on this matter.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive has had regard to the Statement of Practice on Staff Transfers in the Public Sector. The new maintenance term contracts require the successful bidder to fulfil any obligations arising from TUPE. Each of the winning contractors has transferred affected staff under TUPE terms.

  Specimen copies of the Instructions for Tendering and Part 11 of the Contract Agreement which refers to TUPE have been lodged in the Parliament’s reference centre.

Pensions

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the terms of the Statement of Practice on Staff Transfers in the Public Sector regarding the protection of occupational pensions were included in the contracts for maintenance and management of trunk roads.

Sarah Boyack: I refer the member to the answer given on 22 March 2001 to question S1O-3171 and the supplementary questions.

Prison Service

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prison chaplains have been appointed on a temporary contract in 2001, at which prisons they are based and which denomination they represent.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  There were seven temporary contracts in 2001 of which four are Church of Scotland and three Roman Catholic.

  The appointments are shown in the table:

  


Prison 
  

Church of Scotland 
  

Roman Catholic 
  



Barlinnie 
  

1 
  

1 
  



Dumfries 
  

1 
  
 



Perth 
  

2 
  

2

Prison Service

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prison chaplains were appointed on temporary contracts in (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999 and (d) 2000.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The information is given in the table:

  


1997 
  

0 
  



1998 
  

3 
  



1999 
  

10 
  



2000 
  

5

Prison Service

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prison chaplaincy posts are currently vacant, at which prisons and for which denominations.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The information is given in the table:

  


Prison 
  

Church of Scotland 
  

Roman Catholic 
  

Scottish Episcopal 
  



Barlinnie 
  

1 
  

1 
  

1 
  



Castle Huntly 
  

1 
  
 
 



Cornton Vale 
  
 

1 
  
 



Dumfries 
  
 

1 
  
 



Glenochil 
  
 

1 
  
 



Greenock 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 



Inverness 
  

1 
  
 
 



Low Moss 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 



Noranside 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 



Peterhead 
  
 
 

1 
  



Polmont 
  

1 
  
 
 



Shotts 
  

1 
  

1

Rail Services

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any limit is or will be applied on the number of passengers allowed to stand on any of the passenger services operated by ScotRail and, if so, how this is or will be enforced.

Sarah Boyack: Under section 5 of the Scotland Act 1998, the provision and regulation of railway services, which includes railway safety, are reserved matters and as such are the responsibility of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. ScotRail is required to meet all relevant GB safety standards, which are monitored by the Health and Safety Executive.

  The Scottish Executive of course recognises that customers have increasing expectations about the quality and comfort of their rail journey. Our consultation paper, Strategic Priorities for Scotland’s Passenger Railway, emphasised that we will look to train operators to consider a range of service quality improvements as an integral part of any new franchise.

Road Safety

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to effect road safety improvements at Duror, in particular at Achindarroch Road end and Cuil Bay Road end, and whether any such work will be carried out by BEAR Scotland Ltd.

Sarah Boyack: Work to improve road safety on this route was completed last year, as part of a Route Accident Reduction Plan on the A828 between Connel and Ballachulish. This included signing and lining measures at Duror and the Achindarroch and Cuil Bay junctions. Further safety improvements including the final stage of the Duror footway scheme and improved visibility at the Achindarroch junction are being progressed by BEAR Scotland Ltd.

Road Safety

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to improve road safety at the Ballinluig junction on the A9.

Sarah Boyack: Following the fatal accident at the Ballinluig junction on 3 April 2001, a meeting was convened with representatives from BEAR Scotland Ltd, the Scottish Executive’s Accident Investigation and Prevention Unit and Tayside Police to discuss safety at the junction. It was agreed that BEAR would carry out a road safety investigation of the junction and prepare a report for the Scottish Executive by the end of May 2001 detailing measures which could be implemented promptly.

Roads

Dr Winnie Ewing (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is aware that BEAR Scotland Ltd has no depot from which to direct its Lochaber operations and what impact this situation will have on the company’s ability to fulfil its road maintenance obligations.

Sarah Boyack: A planning application for a depot at Lochaber was lodged by BEAR Scotland Ltd on 10 January 2001 and negotiations are continuing with the planning authority. If the planning authority refuses permission, or fails to determine the application within two months, BEAR Scotland Ltd has the option of appealing to the Scottish Ministers. The new operating company has contractual obligations to carry out maintenance on trunk roads from 1 April 2001. Any additional interim arrangements to address this situation are the new operating company’s responsibility.

Roads

Mr John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive who is responsible for the removal of litter from verges, landscaping and lay-bys on the trunk road network in each of the maintenance contract areas and whether there has been any alteration to these arrangements as a result of the recent letting of new contracts.

Sarah Boyack: Responsibility for the removal of litter from special roads and motorways lies with the Scottish Executive as the roads authority. For all other trunk roads the responsibility rests with the local councils through which area the trunk road passes. These are statutory obligations and there has been no alteration to these requirements as a result of the recent award of the management and maintenance contracts for the Scottish trunk road network.

  The recently awarded management and maintenance contracts contain a provision to require the new operating company to liaise with local councils and to ensure that their policies meet with the requirements of the relevant sections of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 with respect to the trunk roads within the Unit.

Roads

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the supplementary answer to question S10-3376 by Rhona Brankin on 10 May 2001, what evidence it has that outgoing trunk road operating companies neglected the clearing of litter from motorways during the final months of the old contracts and left a legacy for the new operating companies to address; who compiled any such evidence; what additional payments have been requested by or made to the new operating companies to clear any backlog, and whether any such additional costs would be recovered from the outgoing companies and, if so, how.

Sarah Boyack: I am aware that concerns have been expressed, but to date have received no evidence to support this opinion or requests for payments. Should any evidence be submitted and accepted for additional payment, costs could be recovered from payments due to the outgoing operating companies.

Rural Development

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the reports of the National Steering Group of the Rural Partnership for Change Initiative will be published.

Jackie Baillie: I have today published two reports which I have received from the National Steering Group and made these available to the Social Justice and Rural Development Committees, on the Internet and to the Parliament’s reference centre. One report describes the lessons learned by the Highland Pilot, the other has around 70 recommendations, which fall into five key areas, for action by the Executive, other agencies and departments to address housing pressure in rural Scotland.

  I am grateful for the commitment and hard work of both the Highland Pilot and National Steering Group and welcome the comprehensiveness of the reports. I have considered their recommendations carefully and have also published my response to the key recommendations by press release today.

Scottish Executive Departments

Mr Duncan McNeil (Greenock and Inverclyde) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what changes it proposes to make to the structure of its departments.

Henry McLeish: With effect from Monday 11 June, the Finance Group and the Executive Secretariat will be brought together to form a new Department to be known as the Scottish Executive Finance and Central Services Department (SEFCSD). Bringing these two functions together will strengthen the links between finance and other key elements of the centre of the Executive which provide support for all ministers.

  From the same date, the Rural Affairs Department will become the Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department (SEERAD). No changes in departmental responsibilities or structure are involved, but the new name will reflect ministerial portfolios.

Scottish Executive Expenditure

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it intends to spend on advertising in respect of policy initiatives or campaigns over the next 12 months, broken down by calendar month, campaign and medium.

Mr Tom McCabe: It is not possible to give details of projected spend for campaigns over the next 12 months as budgets are not held centrally. Throughout any year campaigns can also arise unexpectedly in response to issues (such as the recent foot-and-mouth disease outbreak). It is difficult to gauge levels of spend before detailed discussion takes place on the targets and goals of any campaign as these can dictate the scale of activity and spend. Similar discussions take place in relation to the timing of campaigns.

Scottish Executive Expenditure

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it uses to assess the success or failure of advertising campaigns in respect of policy initiatives.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Scottish Executive measures the success of its advertising campaigns in a number of ways. This can involve baseline research where items such as levels of awareness or behaviour can be measured. When a campaign is completed or throughout longer campaigns the research can be repeated and any shift noted.

  Some campaigns are set specific targets such as the recent flu immunisation campaign where the target percentage of uptake in the over 65 age group was exceeded. Campaigns that have a response mechanism such as a telephone help line are measured by the number of calls.

  At the end of each campaign and during the longer running campaigns, departments monitor systematically the evidence of research and other measurement methods to assess their effectiveness and to alter them as necessary, often setting new goals and targets for the advertising agencies involved.

Sex Offenders

Mrs Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce its proposals following the recommendations in the report of the MacLean Committee on Serious Violent and Sexual Offenders.

Mr Jim Wallace: Scottish Ministers welcomed the MacLean Report when it was published in June 2000. I said then that we would consult on the recommendations and, in the light of the responses received, bring forward proposals for the sentencing, management and treatment of this small but difficult group of serious offenders. Those proposals are set out in a White Paper which will be published today. We intend to legislate on the proposals as soon as practicable.

  Copies of the White Paper will be made available in the Parliament’s reference centre.

Single European Currency

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has carried out a survey of the potential costs of the introduction of the euro to (a) each local authority, (b) schools and (c) the NHSiS.

Angus MacKay: It is not possible to estimate the cost of an introduction of the euro.

  The cost of a changeover would depend on the timing, the overall approach and individual management decisions.

Social Work

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the attendance levels of local authority social work department employees were in each of the last five years for which figures are available, broken down by local authority area.

Nicol Stephen: Local authorities should collect this information which is not held centrally. In his recently published annual report, based on a round of visits to each local authority, the Chief Inspector of Social Work Services made reference to the fact that social work and social care can be very stressful occupations and that the levels of sickness amongst staff are frequently the highest in the local authority. The Association of Directors of Social Work has produced a management resource pack designed to support frontline staff which, amongst other things, tackles the issue of absences. As a consequence of monitoring and following up, absences have been reduced in some authorities (for example, East Renfrewshire reported reduced levels from 14% to 6%). The Chief Inspector’s annual report underlines the importance for local authorities of good employment practices as a means of improving attendance levels.

  Information on the related issue of recruitment and retention of staff will be collected centrally for the first time this year by the SEHD Social Work Statistics Division. This will be published towards the end of 2001. The next Chief Inspector’s annual report also intends to return to the issue.

Social Work

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent by local authorities on personal social services, net of any income received from charges made for such services, in (a) 1995-96, (b) 1996-97, (c) 1997-98, (d) 1998-99 and (e) 1999-2000.

Angus MacKay: The information is contained in the table.

  


Social Work Expenditure 
  

£ million 
  



1995-96 
  

1,031.645 
  



1996-97 
  

1,068.976 
  



1997-98 
  

1,086.659 
  



1998-99 
  

1,135.295 
  



1999-2000 
  

1,200.379 
  



  Source: As reported by local authorities in their Local Financial Returns 1995-2000.

  Notes:

  These figures are total Net Expenditure.

  1999-2000 data are provisional and may be subject to change.

Youth Summit

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish its report of the Youth Summit held last June and what further action will be taken as a result of any such report.

Nicol Stephen: The Executive plans to publish the report of the Youth Summit shortly, together with an indication of our proposed follow-up action.

Youth Summit

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to prepare, and circulate to all of the young people who attended, a report on the Youth Summit held in June 2000.

Nicol Stephen: The report of the Scottish Youth Summit is in the final stages of preparation and will be circulated and made available shortly.

Youth Summit

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why it has not yet prepared, and circulated to all of the young people who attended, a report on the Youth Summit held in June 2000.

Nicol Stephen: A report is in the final stages of preparation and should be published shortly.